This copy is for your personal non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies of Toronto Star content for distribution to colleagues, clients or customers, or inquire about permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com

Sisters Maxime, Chloe and Justine Dufour-Lapointe, left to right, pose after making Canada's Olympic freestyle ski team Monday. (Paul Chiasson / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

By The Canadian Press

Mon., Jan. 20, 2014

MONTREAL—Reigning Olympic champion Alexandre Bilodeau and a trio of history-making sisters are headlining Canada's freestyle ski team roster for the Sochi Olympics.

Bilodeau, from Montreal, won his third straight World Cup moguls event over the weekend, edging teammate Mikael Kingsbury.

Kingsbury and Marc-Antoine Gagnon were also on the early 20-athlete list submitted by the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association on Monday.

“I am ready to hit the slopes of Russia and show the world why Canada is a force to be reckoned with,” Bilodeau said. “The Canadian Olympic freestyle team is totally focused. These Games belong to Canada.”

He acknowledged he'll be feeling a little less pressure than he did in Vancouver four years ago.

Article Continued Below

“In Vancouver, I showed up with a gun to my head,” he said. “I wanted a medal. I put a lot of pressure on myself. Fortunately, I managed to pull myself together after working hard with my sports psychologist a week before the Games. Now, in Sochi, the work is done.”

The women's moguls team includes Montreal sisters Chloe, Justine and Maxime Dufour-Lapointe along with Audrey Robichaud of Quebec City. Chloe and Justine finished 1-2 over the weekend at a World Cup in Val St-Come, Que.

Canadian Olympic Committee president Marcel Aubut said it's the first time in the world — not just Canada — that three siblings will compete on the same Olympic team in the same event.

“I always hoped that I would be able to represent the nation by doing what I love,” said Justine Dufour-Lapointe. “To be able to say that I am now doing that is a dream come true. I can't wait to represent Canada in Sochi.”

Maxime, the oldest of the three the last to qualify, said she wasn't surprised to get a berth.

“Honestly, I never had a doubt,” she said. “It's been my objective since May. That was clear. I planned the entire season: travel, training, racing. I knew exactly what to expect and gave it my all. When it came time to race this season, I was ready.

“All my attention has been on one thing — my skiing,” she added. “I really stuck to my plan because I knew it would work for me.”

Delivered dailyThe Morning Headlines Newsletter

The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, One Yonge Street, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5E 1E6. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please contact us or see our privacy policy for more information.

More from the Toronto Star & Partners

LOADING

Copyright owned or licensed by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or distribution of this content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited and/or its licensors. To order copies of Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com